Ref Watch City Games - 2023/24

[Blue Mist]

You know, you're probably right. Does my entire argument fall down on that fact? Maybe, maybe not. Who knows? I yearn for the simpler times of old when I used to understand the rules of football and know when they were being manipulated. Strange times we live in :)

Just to clarify the defender decked Walker just before our goal. He was not booked. He then decked Phil. He was not booked. 30 seconds later he decked Bernie, the foul was given but he was not booked.

 

[Platt Lane 59]

Just to clarify the defender decked Walker just before our goal. He was not booked. He then decked Phil. He was not booked. 30 seconds later he decked Bernie, the foul was given but he was not booked.

Not just a double decker then ?

 

[Alan Harper's Tash]

The point at which he made that decision though was HIGHLY questionable, that is why the club and fans deserve a true explanation and not the tripe Webb served up to satisfy his media obligations. If this is let go, where is the line drawn on referee's power to stop advantages being played? How about waiting until the ball leaves the strikers boot and is heading for the top corner only for play to be pulled back? It gives too much opportunity for referee's conscious or unconscious biases to come into the mix. I'm not saying we shouldn't trust referee's with making these decisions, I am just saying, when such monumental unprecedented errors occur there has to be transparency, and there just hasn't been that here.

Advantage has always been like that. How often do you see players remonstrate with a ref for not playing on? Most weeks somewhere in the Premier League.

This one happened to be in the last minute of a tight game that we were going to have a golden chance to score. That’s why it’s so talked about.

Hooper messed up. He should have let play go on, but for whatever reason, he thought we didn’t have an advantage coming.

I’ve already said that I think Webb should go as trust in the system is far lower with him in charge than it was before. He’s spouted some utter drivel to try and explain Hooper’s decision, but made it worse as what he said sounded implausible.

 

[Paladin]

He blew the whistle before he knew whether it was going to accrue, he made an early and shit judgment.

I’m not inventing anything, let alone facts. I’m giving an opinion on his thought process that I’ve been consistent with since it happened. There’s been some inventing of laws and guidance on this thread but that’s it as far as I’ve seen.

You think he’s done it knowingly to stop us and so is corrupt, I think he’s incompetent. Neither of them are good things.

I think you are referring to me here. Everything I have said has been in good faith, with nothing at all invented. The laws themselves are open to more than one interpretation. I have accepted that my interpretation isn't borne out by current practice, but it is also clear that Howard Webb's official version is wrong under the Laws of the Game.

 

[cheekybids]

It isn’t corruption though.

corruption is defined as: dishonest or fraudulent conduct by those in power, typically involving bribery.

We’re not far apart on your first paragraph.

Playing advantage is at the discretion of the referee. He’s not made an unlawful decision in footballing terms, he’s made a shit one.

Getting an offside call badly wrong is a fundamental error in footballing law. Hence that one got an apology.

Typically yes but it’s too simplistic to think it’s only bribery there are many forms & I believe influencing rather than bribery on this occasion.

 

[Alan Harper's Tash]

Typically yes but it’s too simplistic to think it’s only bribery there are many forms & I believe influencing rather than bribery on this occasion.

It’s hard to change a belief. We believe different things and have put forward our reasoning. There doesn’t seem much more to add, apart from from my side, if they are corrupt, then they are incredibly bad at it.

 

[Moss Side's Finest]

Advantage has always been like that. How often do you see players remonstrate with a ref for not playing on? Most weeks somewhere in the Premier League.

This one happened to be in the last minute of a tight game that we were going to have a golden chance to score. That’s why it’s so talked about.

Hooper messed up. He should have let play go on, but for whatever reason, he thought we didn’t have an advantage coming.

I’ve already said that I think Webb should go as trust in the system is far lower with him in charge than it was before. He’s spouted some utter drivel to try and explain Hooper’s decision, but made it worse as what he said sounded implausible.

I get your point about advantage being played week in week out but this incident was not just about that, it was also about the reversal of an advantage. It's also about the fact that we are still no clearer from what Webb said as to whether Hooper actually consciously played the advantage in the first place, and why he chose to pull it back. There was literally no reason whatsoever for him to blow to bring play back, either Jack goes on and scores (and then VAR checks every was OK) , or Jack gets tackled (at which point he pulls play back) and we get a free kick. He made a string of errors, not just one and neither his in game mic or actions after the game have explained why they happened.

I'm not debating corruption or not here BTW, I'm saying it is disgraceful and questionable as to why PGMOL feel a proper explanation or apology isn't required.

 

[Alan Harper's Tash]

I get your point about advantage being played week in week out but this incident was not just about that, it was also about the reversal of an advantage. It's also about the fact that we are still no clearer from what Webb said as to whether Hooper actually consciously played the advantage in the first place, and why he chose to pull it back. There was literally no reason whatsoever for him to blow to bring play back, either Jack goes on and scores (and then VAR checks every was OK) , or Jack gets tackled (at which point he pulls play back) and we get a free kick. He made a string of errors, not just one and neither his in game mic or actions after the game have explained why they happened.

I 100% agree. Webb is inept at both management and PR.

 

[cheekybids]

It’s hard to change a belief. We believe different things and have put forward our reasoning. There doesn’t seem much more to add, apart from from my side, if they are corrupt, then they are incredibly bad at it.

There are things we agree I just feel the explanation was disingenuous. It makes no sense which is why others like yourself have invented more acceptable reasons why he did it.

My main point is Webb is weaving corruption further into the game as he’s not encouraging the referees to apply the LOTG but to try & avoid controversy.

 

[Alan Harper's Tash]

There are things we agree I just feel the explanation was disingenuous. It makes no sense which is why others like yourself have invented more acceptable reasons why he did it.

My main point is Webb is weaving corruption further into the game as he’s not encouraging the referees to apply the LOTG but to try & avoid controversy.

We agree on Webb being disingenuous too. We differ in the speculation as to why he was.

Hooper didn’t make a decision that was against the LOTG, as advantage is applied at the ref’s discretion. He just made the wrong call and we still don’t know why.